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For a healthy summer meal, this Vietnamese Salad is bright with Asian flavors and loaded with crisp, fresh vegetables.

An Asian Salad Recipe is not a dull diet recipe, but instead, an entree focused on light, nutritious ingredients that happen to be delicious!

Vietnamese Chicken Salad in a white serving bowl.

Why You Must Make

  • The Asian-inspired dressing is terrific!!!
  • This salad is chock full of delicious vegetables!
  • You can eat it as a side salad or add chicken and make it your dinner.

I adore noodle or cabbage salads with soy sauce, sesame oil, and even peanut butter. I was contemplating which type to create when this Saveur recipe for Vietnamese Chicken Salad appeared in my inbox. Loads of shredded veggies and chicken were dressed with lime juice, fish oil, rice wine vinegar, and canola oil. It was intriguing and I knew I had to test it out.

Vietnamese salad ingredients on a sheet pan with labels.

Ingredient Notes

  • Kitchen Staples – Garlic, Sugar, Vegetable Oil, Black Pepper
  • Jalapenos – minced, wear gloves, especially if you wear contact lenses.
  • Red Bell Pepper – julienned
  • Rice Wine Vinegar
  • Fish Sauce – A fermented Asian seasoning made from fish. I use Red Boat brand.
  • Lime Juice – freshly squeezed
  • Onion – look for a small sweet onion, then cut into thin slices.
  • Chicken – shredded. May omit or use sliced beef, salmon or shrimp.
  • Napa Cabbage – shredded
  • Carrots – julienned
Overhead view of Vietnamese Chicken Salad in a small white bowl.

Expert Tips

When I gathered with my sisters a few years ago, we made a Vietnamese Noodle Bowl (see recipe link below) with quite similar ingredients. This Vietnamese Chicken Salad is heavier on the veggies and sans noodles. Perfect for my lunches during the week. And I could easily make it my dinner, too, but the picky fellow I live with likes his meat and potatoes, rib-sticking type dinners.

  • Using shredded rotisserie chicken or leftovers makes for speedier prep.
  • Shake up this Asian Chicken Salad by adding any of your favorite vegetables. You may want to up the bell peppers, or add sugar snap, snow peas, or cucumbers.
  • The sky’s the limit. Use leftover slices of rare beef or chunks of roasted salmon instead of chicken. Or omit the chicken altogether. There’s no excuse not to add this healthy entree salad to your menu!

How to Make

Vietnamese salad process shots 1,2.
  1. Whisk together salad dressing ingredients.
  2. Mix in jalapenos and set aside.
Vietnamese salad process shots 3,4.
  1. Shred, julienne, and slice all salad ingredients.
  2. Mix together salad ingredients, toss with the dressing and serve!

Frequently Asked Questions

What Are the Components of an Asian Salad?

An Asian salad typically contains these ingredients:
Vegetables like cucumbers, bell peppers, cabbage, edamame, and onions.
Nuts or Seeds like peanuts, almonds, cashews or sesame seeds.
Protein like chicken, beef or shrimp.
Salad Dressing with soy sauce, rice vinegar, lime juice, oil.

Can an Asian Salad Be Made Ahead of Time?

The salad ingredients can be prepped ahead of time and the salad dressing can be mixed. But to prevent the cabbage from getting soggy, don’t toss the salad with the dressing until just before serving.

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Small white bowl filled with Vietnamese Vegetable Salad next ot a red handled fork.
The Recipe:

Vietnamese Chicken Salad Recipe

Prep Time 20 minutes
Total Time 20 minutes
Yield 4 servings

A veggie packed chicken salad with an Asian flair!

Ingredients

  • 2 jalapenos, minced or sliced very thin
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • 2 tablespoons sugar
  • 1 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
  • 3 tablespoons fresh lime juice
  • 3 tablespoons fish sauce
  • 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
  • 1 small onion, thinly sliced (I used a sweet Vidalia onion)
  • 2 cups shredded cooked chicken, optional
  • 4 cups shredded napa cabbage
  • 2 carrots, julienned
  • 1 red bell pepper, julienned
  • Freshly ground black pepper
  • Cilantro, for garnish
  • Chopped mint, for garnish

Instructions

  1. Mince or slice jalapenos.
  2. Add garlic, sugar, rice wine vinegar, lime juice, fish sauce, oil, and onion.
  3. Mix till sugar dissolves.
  4. Add shredded chicken, shredded white cabbage, red bell pepper, and carrots.
  5. Season with freshly ground black pepper, mix and garnish with cilantro and mint if desired.

Notes

Adapted from Saveur.

Wear disposable gloves to chop jalapenos.

Omit chicken to make as a side salad.

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

4

Serving Size:

1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 316Total Fat: 19gSaturated Fat: 3gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 15gCholesterol: 63mgSodium: 1136mgCarbohydrates: 18gFiber: 2gSugar: 10gProtein: 19g

HOW MUCH DID YOU LOVE THIS RECIPE?

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© Liz Berg
Cuisine: Vietnamese / Category: Salads